Landmarks 1960 - 1979

1960

March 19The Choir combined with Morriston Orpheus Choir and the BBC Welsh Orchestra under the baton of Mansel Thomas for a broadcast of the Cherubini's "Requiem in D Minor".

October 22John Haydn Davies led the Choir, and the entire Ninian Park football stadium, with the congregational singing prior to the Wales vs Scotland international match.

1961

August 1John Haydn Davies was presented with the M.B.E. by Her Majesty The Queen at Buckingham Palace.

August 12The Choir won its sixth consecutive first prize at the Royal National Eisteddfod in Rhosllanerchrugog, creating a record amount of consecutive wins in the national arena.

October 20The Choir and John Haydn Davies once again led the singing at the international football match between Wales and England at Ninian Park, Cardiff.

Parc Colliery, 19631962

May 21The Choir won the Semi National Eisteddfod, Cardigan

August 11The Choir was presented with the second prize at the Royal National Eisteddfod in Llanelli

October 20Once again the Choir and John Haydn Davies’s services were called upon to lead the congregational singing at Ninian Park, this time for the international football match between Wales and Scotland.

1963

May 4The Choir undertook its first visit to Doncaster at the invitation of the Doncaster Wheatsheaf Girls Choir.

September 7-12The Choir of 95 choristers flew to Switzerland on its first overseas tour. During the visit they performed in Baden, Schaffhausen, Winterthur and in the Lord Mayor's Procession, Zurich, before a crowd of 85,000 people.

October 5The Choir won their fifth consecutive first prize at the Miners' Eisteddfod, Porthcawl.

1964

August 18Despite the sudden illness of John Haydn Davies, the Choir once again secured the first prize at the Royal National Eisteddfod, Swansea.

September 16Owing to the illness of John Haydn Davies, the Choir performed in its first full concert without him. The event occurred at the Park & Dare Theatre where Alwyn Jones of the BBC took up the baton. Other concerts during this period were conducted by chorister Cas Powell.

1965

John Cynan Jones's first concert, 1965

May 8A concert was held in the College of Advanced Technology in Cardiff, in the presence of HRH Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent.

September 22-23

The Choir gave two performances at the Barry Memorial Hall to celebrate the opening of the BBC 2. Fellow artists included Margaret Price, Geraint Evans, Donald Houston, Osian Ellis and the BBC Welsh Orchestra.

October 30Associate Conductor John Cynan Jones led his first full concert at the Town Hall in Acton.

1966

April 8The Choir held its first Good Friday Concert with the Parc & Dare Band at the Park & Dare Theatre, Treorchy.

June 18The Choir performed Brahms “Alto Rhapsody” at the Llandaff Festival of Music in Llandaff Cathedral.

November 22The Choir was honoured to appear at the "The Royal Concert" (Festival of St. Cecelia) in the presence of Her Majesty The Queen and his Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh in the Royal Albert Hall, London. Treorchy Male Choir was the first Welsh choir to be invited to this prestigious event.

1967

May 13The Choir was presented with the first prize at the Semi National Eisteddfod in Cardigan.

August 12The Choir won their eighth Royal National Eisteddfod of Wales at Bala under the baton of Associate Conductor John Cynan Jones and assisted by guest accompanist Marion Williams (owing to the ill-health of Tom Jones). This was the Choir’s last competition entry.

October 1The Choir appeared on the "Victor Spinetti Show" from the Park & Dare Theatre, Treorchy.

1968

Tom Jones with all his fellow "Jones" singers

April 7The Choir embarked on a forty-year relationship with the EMI Record Company by recording their first long-playing album for the label called “The Pride of Wales.”

June 1-3The Choir enjoyed its first tour of Cornwall.

1969

January 14John Haydn Davies officially retired as the Conductor of the Treorchy Male Choir.

February 9John Cynan Jones was appointed as the new Conductor

May 24The Choir performed outside City Hall, Cardiff with the Band of the Royal Marines to celebrate the opening of Croeso 69 investiture year at the invitation of the Speaker of the House of Commons, George Thomas.

Tom Jones bought the first round after filmingJune 7-15The television film "Choirs of the World" was made for a German film Company (Lutz Welnitz Productions) at various locations throughout South Wales.

November 19-23The Choir spent four days at the ATV studios in Borehamwood, Elstree, to film the Christmas edition of “This is Tom Jones”. Also on the programme were Millicent Martin, Jean Collins and David Fry.

The Choir performed at the request of Tom Jones’s manager, Gordon Mills, who came from the Rhondda and it was left to producer Ronnie Cass to make the necessary vocal arrangements.

1970

Tom Jones, Ella Fitzgerald and the Choir

September 18The Choir made the "Harry Secombe Show" with Sacha Distel, Nina and Donald Houston at the BBC Studios in Shepherd Bush.

October 31The Choir appeared at the opening of Cardiff RFC before the match against the WRU Presidents XV. President was past captain Eddie Thomas, a former member of the Choir.

November 26-30The Choir appeared on another Christmas edition of “This Is Tom Jones” with Rudolph Nureyev and Ella Fitzgerald. The “queen of jazz” was so impressed by the Choir that she presented her arrangement of “Just A Closer Walk With Thee” to them.

1971

February 2At the request of Ronnie Cass, a section of the choir featured with Tom Jones on the "Burt Bacharach Show" for U.S.A. television at the ATV Studios in Elstree. This programme gained an "Emmy" award for light entertainment and the choir received a special commendation for its performance.

Burt Bacharach Show with Tom Jones, 1971July 20Jennifer Jones was appointed the new Accompanist of the Treorchy Male Choir following the sad passing of Tom Jones.

October 2

The first concert was given at the Greathouse Cheshire Home in Chippenham. A strong bond of friendship continued for many years.

December 7For the third consecutive year the Choir appeared on the Christmas edition of the Tom Jones show, filmed at the BBC Studios in Shepherd Bush, London.

1972

March 1To celebrate St David’s Day the Choir appeared at the National Sports Centre in Cardiff with Rachel Thomas, Iris Williams, the Cory Band and a host of other choirs and orchestras.

April 24The Choir was invited to appear in a radio broadcast to celebrate the 2,000th edition of “Good Morning Wales” for the BBC.

April 29To celebrate the Festival of Wandsworth, the Choir spent a weekend in London to appear in Battersea Town Hall.

September 16The Treorchy Male Choir Room was officially opened at the Greathouse Cheshire Home in Chippenham.

1973

John Cynan Jones and Julie Andrews, 1973

February 13To celebrate fifty years of Welsh broadcasting, a special edition of “Aelwyd Y Gan” was broadcast from Cardiff featuring the Choir, Stuart Burrows, BBC Welsh Orchestra and the Cory Band.

September 18The Choir recorded the Japanese National Anthem, "Kimigayo" for HTV.

November 26-December 1The Choir appeared with Julie Andrews on her Christmas Show along with Peggy Lee and Peter Ustinov.

1974

June 17Conductor Emeritus John Haydn Davies led members of the Choir in a television programme entitled “The Golden Age of Tonic Solfa” in which he praised the benefits of the musical notation.

November 30At a concert in Sheffield City Hall the Choir joined forces for the first time with the champion Brighouse and Rastrick Band. The compere for the evening was Cliff Morgan.

Official Photograph, 1974 1975

June 10Choristers were filmed in miners' outfits walking the length of Dumfries Street for the "Ryan Davies Show" with Max Boyce.

November 2The Choir joined the Benny Litchfield Orchestra at Pontypool Leisure Centre to film the Max Boyce Show.

1976

May 7The Choir appeared at a star-studded concert in the Capital Theatre, Cardiff, in celebration of that year’s Grand Slam rugby victory. Also performing were Alun Williams, Harry Secombe and Max Boyce.

1977

January 17John Haydn Davies conducted the concert in Farnborough and he handed the baton to Jennifer Jones to conduct the item "Roll Jordan Roll”. She was the first woman to ever conduct the Choir.

February 20The recording of “A Valley Called The Rhondda” long player at Brangwyn Hall, Swansea, marked the first record with arrangements especially commissioned by EMI Records including “Hava Nagila”, “With You On My Mind”, “Impossible Dream” and the title song itself.

March 24At the concert in the Colston Hall, Bristol, John Haydn Davies conducted the Choir for the last time.

May 24The Choir performed at Blenheim Palace for a BBC television show called “Air and Graces".

"Celebrations" with Sir Geraint Evans, 1977June 2The Choir once again joined forces with Harry Secombe and Alun Williams for a performance at Rhondda Sports Centre. Due to the continued illness of John Cynan Jones, choral history was made when For the first time the entire concert was conducted by a woman as Jennifer Jones took up the baton.

June 11-12The Choir spent two days filming the HTV programme “Celebrations” with Geraint Evans.

October 8On the Choir’s fourth visit to the Greathouse, Chippenham, Group Captain Lennard Cheshire VC, Founder of Cheshire Homes, was present.

1978

April 27

HRH Princess Alexandra was present at the Choir’s concert in Rhondda Sports Centre in aid of the Queen’s Silver Jubilee Fund.

November 30The Choir was presented with the Rhondda Recognition Committee Award for its distinguished service to the cultural history of the borough at the Park & Dare Theatre.

1979

January 14The Choir performed at the Ryan Davies Memorial Concert with Harry Secombe, Glyn Houston, Ruth Madoc, Phillip Madoc, Helen Field, Delme Bryn Jones and the Parc and Dare Band at the New Theatre, Cardiff.

October 13After a lapse of sixteen years the Choir returned to Doncaster to share the stage with the Doncaster Wheatsheaf Girls Choir.